And They Called It
by Firestar9mm
Summary: She may not have seemed like she was listening, but she remembers more than he realizes.


**Author's Introduction:**

Like _Grey Morning_, this came out of nowhere. And I _still _can't sleep. Something's wrong.

Don't own anything. Can't sleep.

The title is a pun, but I'm not sure how many readers will get the song reference.

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_**And They Called It…**_

_A Danny Phantom fanfiction by Firestar9mm

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"It's probably a little late to ask this, but where are you taking me?" Danny Fenton asked his best friend, who was currently trying to keep her eyes on the road. "And is there a reason we're taking the Specter Speeder? Why couldn't we have just taken our motor scooters?"

"I'm planning on bringing something back with us," Sam Manson said cryptically, checking her black liquid eyeliner in the rear view mirror and therefore swerving a little on the road. "That's why we couldn't take the scooters. Just sit back and enjoy the ride. We'll be there soon."

"Be _where_?" he asked, unable to help smiling at her cloak-and-dagger tactics. "Sam, where are you taking me?"

"I know what you need," was all she said, punctuating the riddle with a silky smile. "Come on, Danny, where's your sense of adventure?"

It had been one of Danny Fenton's stranger Saturdays--and he usually spent his weekends fighting ghosts. Sam had shown up at his house rather early for her—the goth was not an early riser and tried to avoid pre-noon sunlight if she could. But she'd appeared at the Fenton's breakfast table and asked if she could borrow Danny for the day—as well as the Specter Speeder, which was a whale of a request. Jack Fenton had been all set to launch into one of his long-winded speeches about responsibility, how ghost-hunting equipment was not a toy and should only be used by "trained professionals" such as himself—but Maddie had shocked the rest of the family by giving Sam a wink and telling her husband that the goth was a very level-headed young woman and would be sure to keep both kids and the Speeder out of trouble. Even Jazz had smiled at Sam, and Danny was suddenly, blatantly aware of everyone knowing something he didn't.

Well, except for his father, but that was usually the case.

They'd been driving for a little under an hour, and Danny leaned back in the passenger seat, experiencing a rare moment of contentment. Ever since the incident with Technus and the subsequent crash and burn of his romantic intentions with Valerie, he hadn't felt like himself. He knew his family was noticing, and he could tell Tucker and Sam, especially the latter, were worried about him. Grateful for their concern but unable to cheer up completely, he'd kept quiet for the last few days, unsure of how to snap himself out of it.

But Sam seemed to have taken matters into her own hands, and he could admit it was working—it felt normal to be out with her, enjoying the sunlight through the Speeder's windows and listening to the music on her mp3 player, which she'd somehow managed to plug into the dash. It seemed to involve rerouting the power to the weapons control unit, so he hoped they wouldn't be needing it today.

After discussing new music, their latest assignment in Lancer's class, and how poorly Sam was handling the Speeder, he couldn't take it anymore. "Sam, _where_ are we going?"

"We're not going anywhere," she said triumphantly, maneuvering the metal beast up a dirt driveway and letting it shudder to a stop. "We're there."

"There" was a house half again as large as Sam's but far less opulent. However, the yard was large and well-manicured, and there were lots of trees around the property. Sam walked right up the front steps and rang the bell, shifting her weight impatiently from one foot to the other. Curiosity was starting to kill Danny.

A blonde woman answered the bell, dressed in jeans and a tank top under a flannel shirt that had seen better days. "Hi, Sam," she said cheerfully. "Right on time. Did you get here okay?"

"Yeah," Sam said, motioning for Danny to follow her up the steps. "Your directions were great. Thanks again, Cal."

"No problem," the woman said, moving aside to let Sam into the house. "Where's your friend?"

Sam smiled at Danny, who quickened his pace into the house. "Uh, hello," he said, still unsure of what exactly was going on.

"This is my friend Danny," Sam said as they moved into a plush carpeted living room, "and he's badly in need of some therapy."

At the word "therapy", Danny felt his nerves fuse. "What? Sam, what the heck is going on here?"

The blonde woman was unruffled by his reaction. "Hi, Danny. Nice to meet you. Neil's out back with them, Sam. Why don't you two head on back there?"

"Great. Thanks!" Sam said, taking Danny's hand and leading him through a spotless kitchen towards a sliding glass door that presumably led to the back.

He allowed her to lead him, but continued firing questions at her. "Who are these people, Sam? Who's out back with 'them'? What do you mean, 'therapy'?"

Sliding the glass door back, Sam said, "Just trust me." Walking out into the yard, she called, "Hey, Neil!"

A young man in jeans and a t-shirt was on the lawn, using a rawhide bone to play tug-of-war with a small golden retriever. Looking up, he called, "Hey, Sam." Scooping the puppy up in one arm, he walked across the lawn to them and deposited the animal in Sam's outstretched arms. She smiled and held it close to Danny, who couldn't help but smile when it licked his cheek.

"This is my friend Danny," Sam said to the man, "and we're here for some puppy therapy."

Neil grinned at them. "You came to the right place. Come on out and see the pups."

As they followed, Sam explained. "Some of my parents' friends do dog shows. Cal and Neil are their breeders, and they came by once for supper...Anyway, they said I could come by and see the puppies sometimes, and I thought I'd, you know, bring you along." She smiled shyly, and Danny felt a pang of astonishing sweetness at her blush.

Impulsively, he hugged her. The hug was clumsy; Sam was caught off-guard and her arms were full of puppy, so she couldn't return the gesture, but she laughed softly.

"Come on," she said. "Let's go see them."

The feeling of contentment he'd experienced on the drive up turned into a long, lazy morning of peace. Sam explained that the puppies were raised in a home environment to socialize them; Danny smiled, thinking of Jazz and her psychology books. He laughed at the way the puppies climbed all over Sam; they seemed to realize how much she loved them and the rest of the creatures in the animal kingdom. The light grew warmer as the sun rose higher in the sky, and for the first time in days, he felt like his old self.

"You _are_ my sense of adventure," he murmured drowsily at one point, stroking the silky ears of the puppy currently resting in his lap.

Sam had been playfully wrestling with another one of the lion-colored pups; now she looked up at him. "What was that? Did you say something?"

"On the way here, you asked me, where's your sense of adventure." He smiled. "You're it."

She laughed. "Oh, come on."

"I'm serious!" He laughed, too, but memories were turning pages in his head like a scrapbook, beginning with Sam encouraging him to check out the ghost portal and continuing through late-night zoo stakeouts and gothic circuses. There were times he truly believed that without her, he'd never do anything worthwhile at all. "This is great, Sam. Thank you."

She blushed, looking away from him. "You're welcome."

He was amazed at her. She'd managed to cheer him up, all right. He was beginning to think that by tomorrow, he'd even decide that everything would be all right after all.

"Which one of these is your favorite?" Sam asked out of nowhere. "Pick."

Danny chuckled. "That's easy." He patted the head of the puppy still in his lap, and it thumped its tail happily against his leg. "This one hasn't let me out of his sight all morning."

The puppy got to its feet and hopped out of Danny's lap. Sam reached for it, letting it sniff her hand, then stroking its head. "Want to come home with us?" she asked it softly, bending her head close to it. "Hm?"

The puppy yipped, licking her nose. Sam giggled. "Okay."

"You're taking one with you?" Danny asked as they got to their feet. Remembering something she'd said earlier, he added, "Is that why we took the Specter Speeder?"

"Yup, but you're going to have to watch out for him while I drive," she explained. "You two bond while I say goodbye, okay?"

Danny was happy to oblige. He almost hated to put the pup in the carrier Sam had miraculously produced from the back of the Speeder. He kept his hand close to the door for the little guy to lick while Sam thanked their host and hostess, then said a polite goodbye himself.

"What made you decide you wanted a dog?" Danny asked as they started back.

She glanced over at him. "I don't know if you remember this, but when Ember had you under that love spell, I came to your window and said 'Open up'. You misunderstood me, and started telling me some complicated story about when you were five and you really wanted a puppy, but your parents wouldn't let you or something."

"I remember," Danny said. "Vaguely. I mean, I _sort _of remember telling you that, but I definitely remember my parents not letting me have a dog." He frowned at the memory, then brought his attention back to the present. "What does this have to do with anything?"

Sam shifted a little. "Well—I sort of cut you off when you were telling me that story. I mean, Ember was going to enslave everybody with her stupid concert, and there was no time—" Realizing she was circling the point, she ended with, "Anyway, regardless of whatever spell you were under, you were sharing a personal memory with me and I shouldn't have snapped at you. I never forgot it."

The pieces finally came together for Danny. "The puppy's for _me_?"

Sam chuckled. "Why do you think I asked you to pick him out? Of course he's for you. My parents would freak if I brought home a dog."

"So will _mine_," Danny said.

"I already talked to your parents. I told your mom it was something I wanted to give you, and she said it would be okay." Sam looked nervous. "Are you mad?"

He laughed. "No, I'm not mad, I just can't believe you did this all without me knowing."

"I wanted to surprise you," she said, almost timidly.

She _had_ been worried, he realized. She wanted to make everything that hurt in his life all better, and she couldn't figure out how.

He was dimly aware of how lucky he was to have her.

She looked as though she wanted to say something else. He watched her struggle with it, then decide in favor. "Danny, you're my best friend, and I love you very much. I mean, if that's okay."

Yesterday, he'd been living on a flat line, a monotone. Now he couldn't seem to stop smiling. What was he supposed to say to that? _Of course it's okay_ sounded too nonchalant.

_You're my best friend and I love you very much_.

It was either one sentence, or two very different ones. He was afraid to wonder which it was.

He reached for her hand, careful not to disturb her driving. "Think you can drive one-handed?"

She laughed, letting him hold her hand over the carrier, which yipped softly. Although she swerved a few times and had trouble keeping her eyes on the road, she managed to make it one-handed all the way home.

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**Author's Notes:**

I have no idea why I keep writing these crappy one-shots! I'm still working on my large chaptered fic! What's going on with me:wonders:


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